The events in this story have not been modified from its original version in any way.

WOOP! WOOP! *POLICE SIREN* (O=officer)(Dre=Andrea)

O- Do you know why I pulled you over ma’am

Dre- I wasn’t speeding and I have my seat belt on, so… no.

O-You can’t drive with your knees.

Dre- I wasn’t!

O-Well ma’am, I just saw you eating, you had a bowl in one hand and a spoon in the other (BOWL OF LAST NIGHT”S CHILI). How is that possible?

Dre-I was using my third hand??

O-Really? Are we really going to do this?

Dre- Officer, I can give you the best sob story you’ve ever heard and every single word of it will be the truth.

O- Alright, lets hear it.

Dre- Well, I’m late for work as an elementary school teacher because I had a stray dog who had been hit by a car in my driveway this morning, then I had to drop my three foster daughters off at daycare, and I am four months pregnant and if I don’t eat in the morning I am sick all day!

O- I’m really sorry ma’am, please be safe, I wont take anymore of your time!

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My baby is now considered a fetus, not an embryo and is an INCH long! Now, I know that doesn’t sound very big, but in just 9 weeks, think how much it has grown!  It blows my mind to read about the progress he or she is making each day.  Its not a lizard baby anymore, the tail is completely gone.  He is looking more and more human each day.  She has fully formed eyes and even eyelids, and her tongue is growing each day this week!  I can’t help but wonder if I am carrying twins, because of my extremely obvious belly-bump at such an early date.  I just can’t hardly wait for our doctor’s appointment in two weeks to find out why I’m showing so much already.  I had to go buy a Belly Band today at Target so my pre-pregnancy pants will still button!  Wow.  Everyone tells me you aren’t supposed to show until you are FOUR months along, not 9 weeks!  I notice people at work looking at my belly, people who I haven’t even told yet.  I can’t believe it is this obvious already.  We are going to make this very exciting news public when our first trimester is up, and I’m so excited this happens to be Mother’s Day! 🙂 How appropriate.

We are so blessed. I couldn’t ask for a better support group.  Everyone at work is just so excited for us, most of them cried tears of joy when I shared the news!  My best friend, who has been dealing with more than her fair share, sent us our very first baby outfits that are absolutely darling, baby bibs, and even the book “What to Expect When You Are Expecting” (which I cannot put down!)  I can’t put into words how much that meant to us… taking time out from herself and sharing, so generously and genuinely, in our happiness.  We told Ian’s sister yesterday over the phone while her fiance, Jonathan, was on Skype.  They said no matter where they are, they will be here when he or she makes their way into the world.  This baby is already so loved by so many people.  I really didn’t want anyone to know about our pregnancy until after the first trimester because of all the scary stories, but now that we are at 7 weeks, I want to scream it from the rooftops.

I was completely sure that our little one was a boy a few days ago, but after speaking with my midwife, who says that she has never been wrong in 30 years using this theory, I am starting to reconsider

This is the theory… It depends on your cravings- If you want sweets- you’ll get sugar and spice and everything nice (girl), but if you want salty, you will get snips and ships (boy)…

and ALL I want is sweet stuff!

Any thoughts??  haha

We love you all and we can’t thank you enough for all of the love and support!

Andrea, Ian, and baby

We told both of our families about our very exciting news and they all couldn’t be happier.  My family was all at Jacque and Mitch’s house sitting on the couch.  I gave mom and dad the box with the picture frame in it and told them to open it.  Mom turned white as a ghost and said “NO WAY… NO WAY!!” Dad didn’t say anything at all (with a smile on his face) for a good five minutes.  Mom was completely shocked and said she always thought she would know when I was pregnant, but it blew her away!  Jacque, however, insisted that she knew I was pregnant the first time she saw me, but she didn’t say anything!  I think everyone, even Cason, was teary-eyed and beyond ecstatic.  Mom and Jacque couldn’t wait to go baby shopping, and Jacque, Mitch and Gabbey started planning their trip to Georgia for Thanksgiving.  My mom told her BFF Clare as soon as she got the chance.  🙂 I think the thought of being “Grandparents” is a huge adjustment for them, just getting over the shock that their baby is having a baby.  I’m sure I will be able to understand that more when I am in their position.  Mom has already decided that she will be called G.G. for Grandma Gordy. 🙂 I wonder if Dad will be stuck with the name “Big Ugly” again… he better come up with something before the baby is born.  Mom loved the name Abraham (nicknamed Brahm) and also mentioned the name Holland for a little girl.

We told Ian’s parents, Khyle and Brittny over the phone two nights later.  Ian told them that they all will soon have new titles.  When they were confused, he explained:  Nanny, Grandpa, Uncle, and Aunt– Karen screamed and they all sounded so happy to have a new baby on the way.  We sat on the phone discussing names for about an hour.  They next morning, Kevin and Khyle called Ian and told him that they already have shingles and siding picked out for the world’s coolest multi-deck tree house that they are going to start building immediately.  haha!! How cute is that?  Ian and I were blown away (once again) from the overwhelming love and support for not only us, but for our new little angel as well.  Karen’s final decision for a boy’s name was James Royce.

I have called my insurance (and it turns out I have great maternity benefits), scheduled my first OB appointment for Monday, April 25th at 9:00 am, and am going to tell the last two principals at my school tomorrow so we can begin figuring out my long-term substitute teacher at work.  I already have my eye on Mr. Medwed… now I just have to make sure to reserve him.  He is pretty much the only person I trust my science program with, so I’ll be keeping my fingers crossed.

I’m more than half way through the first trimester now, but am getting sicker every day.  The so-called “morning sickness” wouldn’t be so bad if it only lasted for “morning.”  Mine, however, lasts all day.  My fire face is starting to disappear, and is being replaced with more nausea and pure and utter exhaustion.  All I do when I get home from work is sleep and make dinner and sleep some more.  The doctor told me that nausea is actually a good sign of a healthy pregnancy, so it is worth every second.  Its going to be really hard to wait a whole month before my next doctor’s appointment- I want to hear his (yes, I said his) heartbeat more than anything.

I have a really strong feeling that our baby is a boy… I’d almost bet my life on it.  I wonder if this is mommy’s intuition, or if I will change my mind a million times by the time we find out the sex.  Neither of us have any preference, aside from a happy, healthy baby, but I just KNOW its a boy.  Mitch says its a girl (we will make sure to give him props if he is right! 🙂 )

Pictures will be added soon, and we can’t wait to meet you, baby!! 🙂

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This is a big week for Mini Me or He! Our baby’s heart starts beating!!   I can’t get over how complex the development already is, despite the fact that its only the size of a APPLE SEED! The beginnings of the brain; the cardiovascular, nervous and reproductive systems; as well as all other major systems are under way.  Baby’s new digs—the amniotic sac and the placenta (aka the hotel and the restaurant)—are still forming at this point. (Feel free to send a housewarming gift.)

I already am thinking about him or her every second of every day.  Today I went to Michaels and bought cute little picture frames to decorate with “I love my Grandma and Grandpa”… I’ve decided that this will be how I tell my family that we are expecting.  In the frame I am going to write a note that says “Insert a picture of your grandbaby on 11/6/2011 (The baby’s due date). We will see who catches on first.  We know we are going to tell our families first before we tell our friends, but it is SO incredibly hard to keep such a huge secret!

I can’t get over how tired I am all the time, and I feel like my heart is going to beat out of my chest.  My face also gets so hot, like its on fire hot, around 4:00 pm everyday.  I have no idea what that is all about.  I think s/he’s playing games with me already.  Today, out of habit, I ended up in line at Starbucks, and by the time I got to the counter to order I realized that I could not have the usual- Grande Skinny White Chocolate Mocha, No Whip…I ordered a strawberry smoothie instead.   Ian is also trying to go caffeine free (for moral support), but he gets this look of disgust on his face when he orders lemonade instead of his beloved Mountain Dew.  (Between you and me, that’s my favorite part of the meal).

We have had a list of baby names saved on our computer for 6 months now… I’m sure we will add to it, delete, edit, and modify a million times- but as of right now, here are some of our faves:

GIRLS:

Charlotte Harper

Giana Adair

Sofia Rose

Scarlett

Blake

London

BOYS:

Gavin Royce

Caleb Isaiah

Govrey

Bram *Abraham*

Landon

Oliver

So even though we only found out we were pregnant two days ago, it turns out I am already considered to be 4 ½ weeks pregnant because doctors consider the first day of your last period as week one.  Go figure!

So- Apparently, our angel is due to arrive around November 6^th!

I made my first prenatal exam with Dr. Green for March 18^th.  The receptionist was the first person I got to tell.  I couldn’t help but have a huge smile on my face when I told her why I needed to see the doctor.

I am beyond excited to tell our parents that they will soon be welcoming their first grandchild into the world.  Ian has had to pry the phone out of my hands multiple times in order to keep me from not calling my mom and blurting it out.  We want to tell everyone in a very special way- since it will be the first child of the next generation on both sides.  Next Friday, (the day of my first doctor’s appointment) we are all flying out to Las Vegas for Cason’s surprise 21^st birthday trip.  I think we are going to make the big announcement at dinner.

I can’t believe how hard it is to wrap my brain around this new reality.  God is at work inside of me right now!  It’s amazing to know that all of these obscure symptoms that I have been experiencing over the last few weeks have been because I am pregnant!

Baby’s Length: Less than 0.25 in.

Baby’s Weight: Less than 0. 25 oz.

Baby’s Size: Poppy seed

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There are no words to describe how much I am looking forward to being a father. As men, we are taught to be strong and constant, allowing our family to live without fear of the future. As I’m sure anyone in my position will understand, I am in uncharted territory during the first 8 weeks of this pregnancy. I must maintain a realistic vision of the future so that if, at any time, I am asked to provide support and reassurance, I can do it with a large measure of reality. When your wife looks deep into your eyes and asks you if everything is going to be OK, the answer must be yes, and it must come from a place deep inside that knows it will be. For one of the first times in my life when I look back at her and say,”everything will be just fine beautiful” I know it will be. Marriage is a wonderful thing, it is a time when a man can (often unknowingly) forget himself and become part of something greater- a family. (Please forgive the spelling and punctuation, my wife hasn’t checked it).

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Well, one day while pondering the possible benefits of a tall adult beverage, we decided it may be a good idea to rule out the possibility that our casual attempts at baby making actually worked.  This seemingly straight forward process turned into approximately 48 of the most confusing and stressful hours of our lives.  The first of four tests left us wondering if everyone sees that almost invisible, faint pink, second line.  Ian was quickly sent back to the pharmacy for reinforcements with one direction- “GET THE ONE WITH WORDS.”  Well… with the help of three very nosy pharmacists, he returned with four different tests (none of which had words, ALL of which left us even more bewildered.)

24 hours later:  Finally Ian returns with the digital test with words… the ONLY test anyone should ever use… after one minute, the small digital screen, just like a magic eight ball, changed our lives forever.  I cried, Ian just got a stupid smile on his face and kept staring at the stick.  Finally, we had the digital, undeniable proof we needed.  The Mielke Way Galaxy just got a little bigger. 🙂

This is the best day of our lives!